(CNN) Seattle officials will provide more than 6,000 families with $800 each in grocery vouchers for Safeway stores as Washington state's biggest city faces the coronavirus crisis, Mayor Jenny Durkan announced Monday. The $5 million program will benefit "eligible families who are currently enrolled in City-supported child care programs and food assistance programs," Durkan said in a statement. "As schools and child care facilities close, we need to do everything we can to support families and ensure they can put food on the table," the mayor said. The grocery vouchers will be distributed in two $400 installments by mail as early as this week, the statement added. The vouchers will allow recipients to buy food and household goods but not tobacco, alcohol, lottery tickets or fuel, the mayor's office said.

Source: CNN March 17, 2020 16:07 UTC